It seems as if showrunner Scott Gimple didn’t just kick the hornet’s nest with The Walking Dead’s most recent character death, he threw it straight into a buzzsaw and is currently being swarmed by furious fans.

The death, spoilers ahoy, is of course Carl, which is all anyone can talk about since the finale. That may have been the idea, but like many seemingly pointless deaths on The Walking Dead, at what cost? Gimple’s decision has riled up fan fury like nothing I’ve ever seen, not even since Glenn’s death, and now an online petition has 50,000 angry fans calling for him to be fired as showrunner.

The petition, as expected, is Carl-centric. It references popular news stories like about how Chandler Riggs’ father took to Facebook to express his dismay that his son was fired just weeks before his 18th birthday, after buying a house in Georgia, and after he’d been told he’d be on the show for at least three more years. There have been many fan conspiracy theories that Carl’s death was political, a way to stick it to Robert Kirkman who AMC has recently been sparring with, or financial, as by becoming an adult Riggs would have almost certainly been entitled to renegotiate for a raise. Though neither of those ideas has been confirmed, and the official answer as to why Carl has been killed off is still purely about plot, allegedly. Though that confuses fans who know that Carl goes on to having an increasingly prominent role in the comics and practically co-lead the series with Rick.

This is how the petition puts it:

“Carl is still alive in the comic series and has gone on to play a pivitol [sic] role in every major conflict the group has faced. Some fans even speculated that he would do this in the TV show, being the last survivor in the apocalypse. A lot of fans have taken to social media to express their dissagreement [sic] with Gimples [sic] decision. Others have also expressed their feelings toward his decision calling for his immediate resignation. This petition is meant to bring AMC TV into the spotlight and fire The Walking Dead showrunner Scott Gimple for his actions and unfair treatment of actor Chandler Riggs.”

It isn’t the most…articulate sentiment, but it reflects what I’ve been hearing online from the million plus readers that have read all my “Carl’s death” articles in the past week. There’s a lot of sadness and bargaining (“maybe Judith’s blood will cure him!”), but a lot of anger directed at one man and one man alone, Scott Gimple.

The Walking DeadAMC

It is a bizarre situation. It’s not just that Carl was killed, it’s that fans know what happened behind the scenes, and that’s most of the reason they’re so mad. I doubt we’d be seeing this firestorm if Chandler Riggs had come out and said “Guys, I’ve spent half my life on this show, it’s time to move on and I’m off to college.” But to hear the opposite from Riggs and his family, that he wanted to stay and was essentially fired, is what’s really set fans off and created this tornado of terribleness that will probably not subside even by the end of season 8.

And to be clear, no, I don’t think this petition has any power whatsoever to get Scott Gimple fired. Season 8 is already filmed and if a change was made, it would be for future seasons to come. And there isn’t any bringing Carl back in any way that would make sense, so that goose is cooked.

But this is a pretty powerful statement. 50,000+ fans signing a petition like this is not nothing, and AMC most certainly does not want to see The Walking Dead’s ratings continue to slide. Yes, it’s still the most popular thing on TV Sunday nights when it airs, but at this rate, how much longer? If the show started bleeding viewers heavily after Glenn and Abraham were executed in a controversial way, could the exodus increase even more sharply after Carl’s inexplicable demise? Almost certainly, if the countless fans I’ve seen swearing off the show in the wake of the finale actually don’t return like they’re promising. And that may end up getting Scott Gimple fired after all.